Cleaning old oil off engine

If you've been following the my activity on this forum you know that this is the year I decided to really get with it on the maintanence of my 97 xtra cab 4x4. After a couple sales falling through on different 2004 double cabs and realizing I have a solid truck with virtually no rust in upstate NY I realized I should just save my money and drive this old truck forever (or into the ground, whichever comes first). I'm also really enjoying working on the truck so that's an added bonus.

So I realized my engine block and head are really gross. There is a bunch of oil caked on the side by the oil filter from years of DIY oil changes. No leaks just spills. I check my fluids regularly and all is well there.

I've read every thread I can find about cleaning your engine bay but haven't really seen many people "degunk" their engine.

I don't want to disrupt anything when cleaning so I'm hoping for a critique of my plan before I get to it.

Plan for getting the engine clean:
1) Take off skid plate for more access to cleaning (also to clean spilled oil and grime off skid plate.
2) use degreaser or simple green and brush/rag to get caked on oil off engine
3) cover up electrics with plastic bags (starter/alternator/coilpcks/battery)
4) spray down engine with hose making sure to keep pressure down.

How does this plan sound?

 

Sounds good, I just used simple green and water hose. If your not using a pressure washer and just a garden hose you shouldn't need to bag everything

 

You should check your local area for a place that does steam cleaning. Works like a champ.

 

I've thought about steam cleaning, trying to not break the bank and also don't really trust someone else to take care of my truck with the attention that I would. Each time I've had it returned to me after sitting at a shop or something it came back with something wrong...from here on out I think I'll be the one putting in the work.

 

Your plan sounds solid!
There are a bunch of engine bay cleaning tips on youtube as well.

 

Thanks for the reassurance... now that I'm not a dumb kid anymore I have taken to watching YouTube and reading forums for a couple days before I turn a wrench to make sure I'm doing things the right way.

 

Cool and mature comment above. I appreciate it, having teenage kids.... Good to research.... Some folks leave the engine running while washing/rinsing to make sure no water effects any ignition parts. A product called Gunk was the cleaning stuff of choice a while back. Not sure if it is even available.

 

That's what 10 years difference does to a person I guess. I bought the truck with my enlistment bonus in 2007 after my '85 lifted rock crawler was too much of a pain to drive around. It's been incredibly reliable for a truck I bought without even doing a mechanical inspection. Now that I understand the value of this truck I'm really working hard to take care of it and keep from taking out a loan for at least a couple more years.

 

Gunk from Autozone and self service car wash. Just make sure you spray carwash bay floor down afterwards. You don't want to leave piles of grease and dirt all over.

 

+1 for Gunk, I used the Liquid spray can -not the Foam -warm up the engine ,not Hot ! Spray liberally , let set for awhile , hose off. I needed to use 2 cans since the PO had never cleaned the engine, etc. YMMV, Worked great. I also removed, degreased & repaired my skid plates also sprayed them with Rustoleum bedliner ,top& bottom..

 

Looks like I will be taking advantage of this warm weather this weekend with a can of Gunk and a garden hose.

 

gunk

running engine

fire hose rinse

tune that thing right up

 

Rinse, then simple green, then scrub, then rinse, then apply armor all tire foam, then wipe down any excess after 30 minutes

 

A pressure washer would help get that dirt out A LOT better than a garden hose, if you can buy or borrow one it would help a lot. Makes washing the truck easier too with a foam soap cannon too haha.

I use commercial strength degreaser concentrate in my pressure washer foam cannon and spray down everything until everything is covered in white soap suds. You also need a detailing brush to brush down the nooks and crannies of the engine bay.

Your engine should be fine moisture wise, just don't spray one area for too long or let water pool and you'll be fine. I spilled ATF all over my alternator when I was flushing it and everything was fine.

 

I just used superclean in a spray bottle, let it sit for about 20 minutes, then hosed it off with a garden hose. Superclean cuts through anything. Just don't leave it on aluminum too long because it will etch it (lye).

 

I'll definitely look into superclean!

Right now it's between gunk, simplegreen, and superclean.